Thursday, June 16, 2011

2011 Topps Black Diamond Redemptions #1 Cliff Lee

One Sentence Summary:Cliff Lee did it all - hit, pitch, run - in a dominant performance against the Marlins.

What It Means: The Phillies now have a seven-game winning streak as they swept the Marlins right out of town. Their record is 44-26 as they board the team plane for Seattle (wait . . . Seattle?) for a weekend series against the Mariners. I loathe Interleague play.

What Went Right: Lee (7-5) allowed just two singles in his complete game shutout while striking out four. He was perfect until Mike Stanton's single with two outs in the fifth. He also started the scoring for the Phillies with an RBI-double in the fourth.

Featured Card: I thought Lee's incredibly impressive performance deserved a sparkly, fancy card, so I scanned this 2011 Topps Black Diamond card. Collectors receive five of these cards from Topps upon mailing in 36 wrappers from a box of Series 1. This practice harks back to the day when we could get a bunch of glossy all-star cards when we mailed in Topps wrappers. I like that they brought this back.

It's not a great picture of Lee, but it's a cool card nevertheless.

Transaction: The J.C. Romero era came to an end this afternoon as the lefty was designated for assignment. Vance Worley, who will start on Saturday in Seattle takes his place on the roster. Romero was an extremely effective reliever in his first few years in Philly, having been signed as a minor league free agent in June 2007. He earned a World Championship ring in 2008, but his inability to locate the strike zone over the past few seasons earned him his walking papers. Pun intended.